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When the polynomial is written in standard form, what are the values of the leading coefficient and the constant?

Given polynomial: [tex]\(5x + 2 - 3x^2\)[/tex]

A. The leading coefficient is 5, and the constant is 2.
B. The leading coefficient is 2, and the constant is 5.
C. The leading coefficient is -3, and the constant is 2.
D. The leading coefficient is 2, and the constant is -3.


Sagot :

To determine the leading coefficient and the constant of the polynomial [tex]\(5x + 2 - 3x^2\)[/tex], we first need to write the polynomial in standard form. The standard form of a polynomial arranges the terms in descending order of their degrees.

The given polynomial is [tex]\(5x + 2 - 3x^2\)[/tex]. Let's rearrange it in descending order based on the powers of [tex]\(x\)[/tex]:

[tex]\[ -3x^2 + 5x + 2 \][/tex]

Now that the polynomial is in standard form, we can identify the coefficients of each term:

- The leading term is the term with the highest degree, which is [tex]\(-3x^2\)[/tex]. The coefficient of this term is [tex]\(-3\)[/tex]. Therefore, the leading coefficient is [tex]\(-3\)[/tex].
- The constant term is the term with no [tex]\(x\)[/tex] (i.e., [tex]\(x^0\)[/tex]) and is [tex]\(2\)[/tex]. Thus, the constant is [tex]\(2\)[/tex].

Therefore, the values are:
- The leading coefficient is [tex]\(-3\)[/tex].
- The constant is [tex]\(2\)[/tex].

So the correct statement is: The leading coefficient is [tex]\(-3\)[/tex], and the constant is [tex]\(2\)[/tex].